A weekly summary of news from the syndicated newspaper/web column, The Canadian Report, by Jim Fox.

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Sunday, March 24, 2013

Canadian government stays the course heading for a balanced budget in 2015

Canada
column for Sunday, March 24/13

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THE CANADIAN REPORT

(c) By
Jim Fox

The Canadian government will continue to practice restraint as it gets
its fiscal house in order for a predicted balanced budget in two years.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, in presenting the federal budget, said
dramatic cuts to program expenses will continue as the government shuffles
priorities and reallocates resources.

The reward will be a balanced budget in 2015, the first since 2008, and
just in time for the Conservatives to campaign on their achievement for an
expected election that year.

There
are projections the deficit for the current fiscal year will be $25.9 billion, up
from $21.1 billion projected by Flaherty in the budget a year ago.

The government plans to revamp its job-skills training to better meet
employers’ needs; promote manufacturing development; begin a renewed 10-year fund
for infrastructure spending; reduce import tariffs on hockey equipment and baby
clothing; and crack down on tax cheaters with offshore accounts.

Canadians need to realize the government “will
be a benign and silent partner in their enterprise, not an overbearing behemoth
squeezing them at every turn,” Flaherty said.

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An
opinion poll suggests Canada could turn back to a federal Liberal government should
the party select Justin Trudeau, 41, to be its next leader.

The
Forum Research poll showed the Liberals, under the son of the late prime
minister Pierre Trudeau, would be able to replace the Conservatives – although with
a minority government if an election were held today.

The Liberals are currently in third place in the Commons behind the
Opposition New Democrats and ruling Conservatives.

The poll shows the Trudeau Liberals would receive 39 percent of the vote,
compared with 32 percent for the Conservatives and 20 percent for the New
Democrats.

Liberals will choose their new leader on April 14, with Trudeau by far
the front-runner, and an election is not due for two years.

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News
in brief:

-
Calgary has edged out Ottawa, the nation’s capital, as the best place to live
in Canada, in an annual survey by MoneySense magazine. Editor Jonathan Chevreau
said Calgary is indicative of “how well” Western Canada did in the survey, with
five Alberta cities among the top 10. Helping Calgary to earn first place is
its abundance of jobs tied to energy industries.

-
There were two near collisions involving vehicles on runways and airplanes at
Toronto’s Pearson International Airport and Hamilton International Airport. In
Toronto, a driver-less van rolled onto an active runway as an Air Canada jet
was preparing to land. The second incident, both of which are being
investigated by the Transportation Safety Board, involved a Kelowna Flightcraft
Boeing 727 and two snowplows clearing the runways.

- Friends
are saying the health of former Alberta premier and Calgary mayor Ralph Klein is
deteriorating rapidly. The 70-year-old Klein has lived in a long-term care
facility since October 2011 and is suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary
disorder and dementia.

---

Facts and figures:

Canada’s
dollar was lower Friday at 97.80 cents U.S. while the U.S. greenback was worth $1.0224
in Canadian funds, before bank exchange fees.

The Bank of Canada’s key interest rate is steady at 1 percent while the
prime-lending rate is 3 percent.

Stock
markets are lower, with the Toronto exchange index at 12,772 points and the TSX
Venture index 1,103 points.

-
Blinding snow and icy roads led to crashes involving more than 100 vehicles on
Highway 2, south of Edmonton, on Thursday. One man was seriously hurt among 102
people receiving medical attention. Also that day northwest of Edmonton, a woman
and two children were killed in a head-on with a truck near Flatbush during a
blizzard. The truck driver, who was also injured, was arrested for dangerous driving
causing death.

-
Police divers have recovered the body of a 32-year-old woman whose van crashed
through a barrier gate, onto a docked BC Ferries boat and into the water near
Gabriola Island. The name of the woman, who was alone in the vehicle at the
time and is from the island, wasn’t being released.